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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27047428">The Shinobi Hunter</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/ewanjefferymurdock/pseuds/ewanjefferymurdock'>ewanjefferymurdock</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Naruto</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Action, Drama</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 19:35:02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>17,394</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27047428</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/ewanjefferymurdock/pseuds/ewanjefferymurdock</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A dark force has descended upon the Hidden Leaf Village, one that threatens to upend their entire way of life. A powerful and cunning villain has placed the ninja of the Land of Fire in their sites, and they won't stop until they have satisfied their lust for combat and destruction. When fighting an enemy who seemingly possesses every advantage, can anyone hope to survive?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Prologue</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
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      <p>Nemui Ito sat upon the brow of Lord Third's great stone face, taking in the bronze sky as the sun set on the Village Hidden in the Leaves. He took several deep breaths, reveling in the cool breeze washing over his face.</p>
      <p>Ito was not a substantially large man; he stood at roughly six feet – not much taller than the average male shinobi – and had a lean body covered in tone muscles. His golden skin reflected light in a soothing manner, making him look like he was made of caramel. He had long, thick, jet-black hair he kept tied back in a style reminiscent of a pineapple, and his face was covered in a full beard about an inch and a half in length.</p>
      <p>His eyes were his defining feature – dark brown, almost black, and framed by full lashes, but the thing that stood out about them most were the lids. They were half closed almost all the time, like he was constantly tired. No, wait, not tired.</p>
      <p><em>Sleepy</em>.</p>
      <p>He wore a light-brown coat that came down to his knees, with sleeves that reached his wrists – though he kept them rolled up to his elbows to show scarred forearms that ended in rough hands with fingernails painted maroon – and a collar that covered up to his chiseled jawline on either side. The coat was open on the front, revealing his gray, short-sleeved fishnet top, which was tucked into his somewhat baggy black pants. A weapon holster was attached to his right thigh with white tape. More white tape started just below his knees and continued down into his black shinobi sandals, which – like most versions of the footwear – were open on the front to reveal toenails painted the same as the ones on his fingers. On his belt hung a standard tan utility pouch on the back-right, a waterskin with an unidentifiable blade hidden underneath on the back-left, and a forehead protector bearing the symbol of the Village Hidden in the Sand attached to a red headband on the front-left.</p>
      <p>The Sand emblem had a horizontal line cut through it.</p>
      <p>Ito had been here once before, on a diplomacy mission several years earlier as a bodyguard for the Kazekage, long before he'd become a rogue ninja. They were here to discuss plans for the chūnin exams, which were to be held in the Sand Village at the time. He remembered the feeling he'd gotten sitting across from the Third Hokage and his companions, even to this day.</p>
      <p>He wanted to fight them.</p>
      <p>As he sat in that room, staring into the soul of the late Hiruzen Sarutobi, he wanted nothing more than to test his mettle against the God of Shinobi right then and there. For obvious reasons, he stayed his bloodlust. Now, he had nothing but regrets for not challenging the old man in that cramped office. Both he and one of his two bodyguards – his son, Asuma, a member of the Guardian Shinobi Twelve back then – were now dead. The fight he'd wanted most would never come.</p>
      <p>Of course, the overwhelming urge to prove himself in combat that had been awakened that day never subsided. No, as a matter-of-fact, it'd only gotten worse. Far worse. Every day he felt more restless, wanting a fight to the death with the most dangerous warriors to make him feel truly alive. Eventually, the need overtook him. That day, he assassinated the Fourth Kazekage's entire ten-man Anbu guard and then fled his village. The ordeal left him with an empty feeling he'd been unable to shake since. They were pathetic, hardly a challenge at all, and he sacrificed his homeland to find that out.</p>
      <p>Now a wandering rogue, Nemui Ito travelled from nation to nation seeking out the most powerful shinobi and challenging them to a fight. To this point, none had survived. None had given him what he was looking for.</p>
      <p>He decided it was finally time he returned to the country where this bloodlust was born, to find the fight he'd been chasing ever since.</p>
      <p>These would be his hunting grounds.</p>
      <p>"Hey! What are you doing up here?"</p>
      <p>Ito lazily turned his head to make eye contact with the person who'd spoken. He found a young ninja – a chūnin, by the look of his vest – with short brown hair and a begrudged look on his face. He was wearing a Leaf headband.</p>
      <p>"Can't you see the fence?" he asked, pointing at the waist-high barrier several yards behind them. "No unauthorized personnel are allowed beyond that point! It's clearly labeled!"</p>
      <p>Ito let out an inaudible sigh, slowly standing and brushing the dust from his pants. "Apologies," he said in a low tone, "I must've missed that." He flashed a small, charming smile and began walking over to the visibly nervous man, who then took notice of the scarred headband hanging from his belt.</p>
      <p>The Leaf ninja drew a kunai and shakily yelled out, "identify yourself!"</p>
      <p>Ito paused for a moment, then gave a short chuckle and continued walking toward his company. He kept his deliberate pace, ignoring the chūnin raising his trembling hand with each foot of the distance covered. Finally reaching him, he walked into the kunai and pressed forward, and the young man did exactly what the rogue ninja had predicted by relaxing his arm and giving way to him. Ito placed his left hand on the boy's chest.</p>
      <p>"I am the end."</p>
      <p>The palm of his hand crackled with electricity as he sent a shock directly into the chūnin's heart. The young man's eyes went wide for an instant before life left them, and he slumped to the ground like a sack of soil.</p>
      <p>Sighing again, he straightened his coat and then reached under it to grab something that was hanging on his utility holster. He pulled out a black mask in the shape of a dragon's face with half-lidded eyes. Placing it on his head and aligning it with his face, he turned back toward the village and put his hands in his pocket.</p>
      <p>"<em>And</em>… go."</p>
      <p>With a flash of lightning and a crack of thunder, he vanished.</p>
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<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Gentle</h2></a>
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      <p>As night fell, a ninja squad of three was making its way through the forest several miles from the village on its way to deliver medicine to a neighboring town for an illness that had begun spreading through the farmers there. Iwashi Tatami and Shimon Hijiri were led by Hoheto Hyūga, who'd taken point to scan the perimeter with his Byakugan.</p>
      <p>"Hoheto," Iwashi said in his usual nervous tone, "do you think we'll get back from this mission by morning?"</p>
      <p>The jōnin turned his milky eyes on his compatriot and taunted in the typical low voice made famous by the Hyūga. "Why, do you have somewhere to be?"</p>
      <p>Iwashi gave a closed-eyed chuckle of embarrassment. "Well actually, you see, I've got a date."</p>
      <p>"A date, huh?" Shimon said with faux interest, peering at his teammate through his hanging brown bangs. "What's her name? Wait, let me guess, she goes to a different village?"</p>
      <p>This got a rare chuckle from the Hyūga.</p>
      <p>"Hey, shut up!" Iwashi said with a red face. "She's real, she works in a shop in the center of town!"</p>
      <p>"One that's closed during the day, I'm sure," Hoheto chided through a smirk. Iwashi's blush turned almost purple. Shimon let out a hearty laugh.</p>
      <p>"We're just messing with you, Tatami. I'm sure your very-real girlfriend is a catch." They both chuckled at the banter, until Hoheto stopped on a branch and gave them a hand signal to halt and keep quiet.</p>
      <p>Turning his head from left to right rapidly – a hard habit to break, even when you can see in almost every direction – he finally caught what he was looking for. "Get down!"</p>
      <p>The three ninja quickly descended from their perches just in time to avoid the senbon that passed over each of their heads and embedded themselves in various tree trunks and limbs.</p>
      <p>"We're under attack, defensive formation!" The two chūnin stood shoulder-to-shoulder at a very slight angle, with Hoheto taking position directly between them on their rear, covering their backs. "It's just one. He's sitting on a branch at ten o'clock."</p>
      <p>Unsheathing a kunai, Shimon said, "is he preparing to ambush us?"</p>
      <p>The Hyūga gritted his teeth. "No, I mean he's literally just sitting on the branch. His back is leaned against the trunk, I'd think he was napping if he weren't looking right at me."</p>
      <p>Iwashi's anxiety got the better of him. "Show yourself!" he shouted nervously.</p>
      <p>"Be quiet, Iwashi!" Hoheto growled. "We are on the defensive. We have the advantage for the moment, don't blow it by showing your hand."</p>
      <p>The relatively inexperienced chūnin gulped and nodded. "Right, sorry Hoheto."</p>
      <p>
        <em>Bird</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Earth Style: Falling Earth Spears</strong>."</p>
      <p>"Move!" Hoheto commanded, and they all rolled forward in time to avoid the rocky spikes that exploded from the ground where they were standing.</p>
      <p>The assailant smirked.</p>
      <p>Just as Shimon recovered to a knee, another spike protruded from in front of him at an angle and impaled him in the ribs, just below his left lung.</p>
      <p>"Shimon, no!" Iwashi began running toward his comrade in a panic; so panicked, in fact, that he didn't notice the senbon aimed at him before it pierced his right shoulder, wedging itself directly in the joint and rendering the entire arm useless. "Agh, damn it!"</p>
      <p>Suddenly, a man in a tan coat and black mask appeared in front of Iwashi. The chūnin couldn't react before the backs of both of the man's fists collided with his chest in a monkey strike and he was sent flying backward.</p>
      <p>Hoheto sneered but did his best to cool his temperament before settling into the Gentle Fist stance. He watched as their attacker let out a slow, calm breath and lowered his hands back to his sides. The unknown man turned and set a masked gaze on the young jōnin.</p>
      <p>"Identify yourself," Hoheto said calmly but sternly.</p>
      <p>The man looked into the sky. "My name is Nemui Ito, of the Sand." He noted the confused expression on the Hyūga's face. "I'm here to hunt and kill the ninja of this village."</p>
      <p>His brow deepened into a scowl. "Why?"</p>
      <p>Ito returned his stare to his opponent. "Because no one can stop me from doing so."</p>
      <p>Hoheto's teeth bared in anger. "You're crazy." Before Ito could retort, Hoheto made his move. Flashing forward, he aimed a palm strike at his foe and landed it in the center of his diaphragm.</p>
      <p>'Direct hit,' he thought.</p>
      <p>Then his hand passed through the man's chest and out the other side. Hoheto's eyes went wide as his target crumbled into sand and fell to the floor.</p>
      <p>'A sand clone!'</p>
      <p>He had no time to consider the situation due to the sole of a sandal connecting with his lower spine. He let out a choked cough as he was sent into a tree trunk. He started to rebound off it, but the back of his head was caught by a rough palm and he was slammed face-first back into the tree. Ito followed through and yanked backwards, throwing Hoheto by his skull several meters through the forest.</p>
      <p>Just as he landed and stopped rolling, he felt the toe of a sandal land just between his shoulder blades. He saw the man balance on one foot and spin in place, extending his other leg and dragging it through the dirt to create a circle. Once it was complete, he leapt a few feet outside the perimeter.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Snake</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Earth Style: Earth Trap</strong>," he muttered. The ground within the circle turned to mud, causing Hoheto to sink several inches. It then hardened like steel and trapped him inside on his belly. His arms and legs were submerged, as was his mouth.</p>
      <p>Without missing a beat, Ito straightened himself and walked over to Shimon, who was breathing uneasily as he bled slowly on the earthen spike that still pierced his torso. Grabbing a handful of his shaggy brown hair, he pulled the young chūnin's head back, exposing his throat. With his left hand, he pushed his coat aside and took hold of the blade handle on his hip, removing it to reveal an old, black karambit knife. He took a moment to make eye contact with the trapped jōnin before sinking the blade into the young man's neck just below the jawline. He could hear the muffled shouting coming from Hoheto as he removed the knife and let his hair go, allowing his head to loll back down as the blood flowed freely across his chest and onto the ground. He was dead in seconds.</p>
      <p>He started toward Iwashi who'd finally made it to his feet. The man noticed the state of his team and emotion overtook him. He rushed Ito, unable to hear Hoheto's warnings to run. With a fist raised, he extended it in a straight jab directed at Ito's masked face, but just as it was to connect, he dodged it like water around a stone at the bottom of a river and landed an uppercut to Iwashi's gut. The young ninja didn't even finish his pained gasp before he took a left forearm to the right cheek, followed by a right knee to the nose aided by Ito's free right hand on the back of his head. He staggered back but was stopped by the same powerful hand grabbing the back of his head once again and driving his karambit into the ribs, severing the liver. Iwashi's eyes went wide knowingly as Ito pulled him in and touched the chūnin's forehead to his.</p>
      <p>"You are brave," he said sincerely. "I mean that. Most who come to understand their position against me do not intend to stay, let alone pursue me in battle. You are a good man." He slowly removed his blade, forcing a shaky gasp from Iwashi as he did. "But brave is not the same as strong, and bravery and foolishness are not mutually exclusive." He wiped the blood from the blade onto Iwashi's right sleeve, then returned it to its sheath beneath his coat.</p>
      <p>"I hope they honor you as you have honored them."</p>
      <p>Ito released the young man's head and allowed his now-lifeless body to fall to the ground as it let out its final breath. He turned to see hateful tears falling from Hoheto's eyes. "I know this is unfair. You were just doing your job and your luck landed you in my path. I sincerely apologize for your misfortune."</p>
      <p>He walked over to the prone ninja, never breaking eye contact. He crouched in front of him, placing his left hand on his head in a sincere manner.</p>
      <p>He ignored the muffled screams of anger, raising his right hand in a unique hand seal – his index and little fingers were extended upward, his middle finger, ring finger, and thumb were all bent and touching at the tips, somewhat like a one-handed Bird seal – and closing his eyes in concentration. Small sparks began to dance around his left hand, but before the technique was complete, Hoheto released a burst of chakra from every point in his body. It gave Ito's hand a decent shock, but more importantly, it practically disintegrated the mud encasing his body.</p>
      <p>Caught off guard, Ito was unable to defend against the horizontal palm that struck his stomach with full force, throwing him back and causing him to roll a great distance through the trees.</p>
      <p>'I missed,' Hoheto thought to himself.</p>
      <p>Pushing himself up onto his hands and knees, Ito lifted his mask to spit blood on the grass before placing it back down. He smiled to himself.</p>
      <p>'Finally.'</p>
      <p>He rolled out of the way to avoid the axe kick that cratered the ground where he'd been just an instant before. Once on his feet, he clapped his hands together to channel chakra.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Rat – Snake – Tiger</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Earth Style: Mud Wave</strong>!"</p>
      <p>The ground broke beneath Ito's feet and exploded to form waves of earth, elevating the rogue ninja into the sky and bringing him in a semicircle around Hoheto.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Snake</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Earth Style: Mud Needles</strong>!"</p>
      <p>The wave trailing behind him began creating thin spears of rock. Soon, there were dozens of earth shards, each about two feet in length, all hovering above the ground. Ito held the Snake sign.</p>
      <p>"<em>Hah</em>!" he yelled, willing the spears to all be fired directly at Hoheto in unison. The young Hyūga gritted his teeth and readied himself, his left palm extended before him, his right positioned to his side. The first spear to reach him was dodged with ease as he spun to his left and directed a chakra-infused forearm into the side of the spear, breaking it in half. The next flew alongside his face once he tilted his head backward, letting it pierce the ground. Turning again, he dodged a third spear, then brought his left elbow in a circle to shatter that one as well.</p>
      <p>He proceeded to evade the spears, destroying them as he could, until they had all been dealt with. Ito was still circling him on a wall of dirt like a surfboard. He closed the distance between them and landed a Jūken strike on the wall with both palms, shattering it to dust. The venerable Sand shinobi easily leapt from the rubble and landed gracefully on the grass. Removing three senbon from the pouch on his thigh, he threw them at Hoheto's feet to force him to retreat, then flipped backward. Sticking the soles of his feet to the trunk of a tree that was behind him, he pushed off with the force of a bullet. Having just landed after dodging the senbon, Hoheto didn't notice Ito as he drove both forearms – crossed over his head – into his torso. He followed through, forcing him through the forest for what seemed like an eternity, then recovered as they were losing momentum and slid on his feet, watching the Leaf jōnin grind to a halt on his back.</p>
      <p>"This is better!" Ito yelled, a sick smile hidden behind his mask as he made the Snake seal once again. The ground began to rumble as static electricity filled the air. Sitting up to gaze upon his opponent, Hoheto saw their hair and clothing billow in the raw energy that soaked the atmosphere around them. "I must say, I wasn't expecting this from one of three random nobodies I came across in the woods! I must thank you for that!"</p>
      <p>Hoheto stood, choosing not to waste any more time listening to this murderer and closing the gap once more, throwing a barrage of Gentle Fist palm strikes. Ito responded in kind, avoiding what he could and retaliating when the opportunity presented itself. He took several direct blows to his extremities, but nothing fatal. He mostly stayed on defense for observational purposes.</p>
      <p>Unfortunately, he wasn't observing closely enough.</p>
      <p>Ito missed the kick aimed at his left shin, taking a hit to a chakra point just above the ankle. His leg flew back, causing him to lean forward into a left elbow to the side of his neck, followed by a spinning backfist to the opposite side of his face. Hoheto pulled back and then drove his left forearm and right palm into the stomach and chest - respectively - of the deadly ninja.</p>
      <p>Blood sprayed into the inside of Ito's mask as he flew to the ground ten feet behind him. He rolled backward and landed on his feet, but the strike did legitimate damage, causing him to hunch over and grab at his midsection with his left hand. This caused an earned smirk to form on the face of Hoheto.</p>
      <p>Then Ito laughed.</p>
      <p>"What a surprise," he said softly, attempting to straighten but the pain forcing him back down, and another infuriating chuckle to escape his lips. "I have to be honest, I'm impressed. You…" he finally found the strength to fully extend his body, wagging a finger at the Leaf ninja, "…you're good. Better than you've been given credit, I'd imagine. How long have you been hidden from the world by the walls of this village, I wonder?"</p>
      <p>Hoheto ignored him, his eyes narrowing in concentration.</p>
      <p>Ito brought his right hand to his chin and grabbed the mask he'd been wearing since he'd appeared, then pulled it off his face and let it fall onto the grass at his feet. "You don't deserve to die staring at emotionless porcelain."</p>
      <p>This got a growl from the white-eyed jōnin.</p>
      <p>"You deserve to see the face of the one who fells you, because you're a warrior."</p>
      <p>"Iwashi and Shimon were warriors," he spat back.</p>
      <p>"<em>No</em>." The sternness of that word caused Hoheto's eyes to widen slightly. It was a severe shift in tone from the aloof attitude he'd shown until now, an almost venomous growl. "Those… <em>boys</em> were no warriors. I absolutely despise the notion that because someone is brave or committed, they deserve to be revered as a warrior. Refusing to die does not make one a fighter. <em>Fighting</em> makes you a fighter. Stubbornness without the power to see your will done makes you no more than a distraction."</p>
      <p>Hoheto's face had twisted into that of a man possessed. "Those men, they were <em>my</em> men! They were strong and kind! No matter what you say, they are my heroes and I will avenge them!"</p>
      <p>The formerly-masked ninja let out a loud laugh. "Then come and do it!" They met equidistance between them, Ito throwing the first punch, which passed almost whimsically along Hoheto's high left cheekbone. The young shinobi smirked, but his confidence grasped his focus and he was unable to anticipate the scorpion kick from the murderer's right leg as it craned over his back and connected squarely with Hoheto's mouth and nose. Wincing at the stinging feeling in his face, Hoheto spun away to his left and tried to rebound, but Ito wasted no time.</p>
      <p>The Sand rogue rolled through his attack and before he was even upright again, he'd let off two senbon, burying them both in the mid-thigh of the emotional Hyūga. He took the man's grunt of pain as an opportunity to close the gap between them and land a left uppercut to the gut, then spinning to the right, he continued the assault with a back-right elbow into the face. Before Hoheto could fall, he was grabbed by the throat and thrown behind the frighteningly powerful ninja.</p>
      <p>He'd only been airborne for a moment when another fist bored into his diaphragm, followed by a back kick to the face, spinning him around. Right as he'd completed his one-hundred-eighty degree turn, yet another fist met his face, sending him back in the opposite direction. 'How the hell is he so fast?' he thought to himself, unable to fathom this man's ability to seemingly be in multiple places at once. 'His speed is even greater than Genma-senpai's.'</p>
      <p>He wasn't afforded much time to contemplate his situation as the heel of a shinobi sandal came down in an axe kick and imploded his face as it drove him back-first into the unforgiving earth. He could feel his eyes and nose filling with blood. Before his Byakugan shut itself down due to shock, he was able to identify a crack running from his upper-right canine to his right orbital bone, practically splitting his face into two pieces.</p>
      <p>'I'm… going to die here.' There was no mistaking it. He'd underestimated his opponent, and because of it, this fight was over. 'I can't move at all. I'm not out of chakra, but I think the force of his kick broke my neck. If I'm not paralyzed, I'm close to it.'</p>
      <p>His thoughts were interrupted as the face of his adversary came into focus, looming over him amidst the settling dust.</p>
      <p>"I have not been given a fight this unexpectedly rewarding in almost a year." If he could, Hoheto would be snarling. Was he supposed to find comfort in that? "I knew I'd made the correct decision when I chose to return to the Leaf."</p>
      <p>The prone boy opened his mouth, coughing before trying to speak as blood ran from the corner of his mouth. "Y-... you won't… find… what you're loo- looking… for."</p>
      <p>Nemui Ito tilted his head. "And why's that?"</p>
      <p>A smirk formed on the beaten man's lips. "N- Na-... Naruto… Uzumaki will… s- stop you."</p>
      <p>The bearded man's mouth curled into a genuine, happy smile at these words as he unsheathed his karambit once again, twirling it in his left hand. "I'll never forget you, Hoheto Hyūga."</p>
      <p>The Leaf ninja's smirk dissipated, but before he could inquire as to how this monster knew his name, a flash of metal turned off the moon, and he was plunged into darkness.</p>
      <p>Standing, Ito wiped the blood from his blade with a piece of cloth he then discarded on the forest floor before returning it to its home on his belt.</p>
      <p><em>Naruto Uzumaki will stop you</em>.</p>
      <p>"It seems I'll find what I'm looking for, after all."</p>
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<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Enter!</h2></a>
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      <p>The silence in the Hokage's office was so prolonged it had become suffocating. A certain loud-mouthed jōnin was unable to maintain his composure.</p>
      <p>"This is absolutely unacceptable!" Guy shouted, startling several of the ninja who'd been gathered before Tsunade Senju's desk. Among them was Shizune holding Tonton, the team leaders, Kakashi Hatake, Kurenai Yuhi, and the aforementioned Might Guy, as well as the Hokage's personal guards, Genma Shiranui and Raidō Namiashi. There were also several members of Tsunade's hand-picked Anbu squadron in attendance.</p>
      <p>They'd just been informed of the team of Leaf ninja who were assassinated several miles northeast of the Fire-Rivers border.</p>
      <p>"Please tell me we have a lead as to who did this, Lady Tsunade!" Guy continued. "There must be consequences and they need to be delivered immediately!"</p>
      <p>Genma hadn't removed his eyes from the window to his left, gazing at nothing in particular. The news of the team's demise was… upsetting, to say the least. He'd played a large hand in Hoheto's training when he was a genin, despite their closeness in age. He cared a great deal for the young branch family member, like a cousin or brother. On top of that, Iwashi was training to become the third member of his and Raidō's Flying Thunder Formation. It was like losing Hayate all over again.</p>
      <p>Tsunade let out a tired sigh. "The investigation is still ongoing. There are no leads as of yet."</p>
      <p>Scowls formed on a few of the faces in the room.</p>
      <p>"Do we know what the attackers were after?" Kakashi asked in his famous aloof way, one hand in his pocket with the other waving nonchalantly.</p>
      <p>"I'm afraid not," Shizune replied. "They were missing nothing they'd left the village with, including the medicinal herbs they'd taken as a part of their mission. Hoheto's eyes were left intact, not that they would've done the enemy much good since he was in the branch family of his clan."</p>
      <p>Genma let out an audible growl, closing his eyes and clenching his fist, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.</p>
      <p>"So, what?" he grunted through gritted teeth, a scraping noise coming from the senbon in his mouth. "You're saying they were killed for no reason?"</p>
      <p>Shizune hesitated to respond, so Tsunade did it herself. "Not for any we can discern."</p>
      <p>The brunette jōnin's grimace deepened.</p>
      <p>"I can promise you," the slug-sannin continued, "his murderer will see justice."</p>
      <p>Genma's eyes opened in surprise at the Hokage's knowledge that he was specifically mourning one member of the team. She gave him a small, sad smile. "He fought well. That much is apparent."</p>
      <p>The man returned her expression, attempting to subdue his uncharacteristic display of emotion. "Thank you, Lady Tsunade."</p>
      <p>A knock at the door pulled everyone from their somber musings. "Come in," the blonde Senju said sternly. The door opened to reveal a spiky-haired chūnin. "Ah, Shikamaru, thank you for coming."</p>
      <p>The boy opened his mouth to respond but forgot what he was going to say when he noticed the number of jōnin in the room. "Uh… what's going on here?" he said sheepishly, scratching the back of his head.</p>
      <p>"Shikamaru Nara," Tsunade said, entwining her fingers in front of her mouth as she did often, "I have an important mission for you."</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>Naruto was returning from his solo mission escorting a visiting noble back to her home in the Land of Keys, leaping from branch to branch as he closed the distance between himself and the Leaf. He'd been gone for over two weeks; the journey only took about three days both ways, but the noble he was tasked with protecting insisted he stayed with her for a short vacation, even going so far as to send compensation back to the Leaf Village for his extended services. She was an attractive woman in her late twenties, with long brown hair and light brown eyes, and she'd taken a liking to him the moment she'd met him. Seeing him defend her from a group of bandits on the way home only made her friendlier. He didn't mind, she wasn't inappropriate or forward, she just genuinely enjoyed his company.</p>
      <p>He promised to visit when he had a chance, but unfortunately, he had to return home so he could do for his friends what he'd done for her. She was understanding, at least.</p>
      <p>"The food in Yusuke's mansion was great, but man, I need some ramen, stat!" he chuckled to himself, his mouth watering at the prospect of indulging in his favorite delicacy for the first time in almost a month. He'd spent all that time training to master his new Rasengan, then once he recovered in the hospital after helping Team Ten defeat those Akatsuki jerks he was given this mission almost immediately. "It feels like I've been gone for ages! I might take a dip in the hot springs tonight after some casual training. Maybe Sakura would like to join me," he mused with a sly grin and a blush tinting his face.</p>
      <p>Naruto's Sakura thoughts never seemed to last long, but it was usually Sakura's fist that interrupted them, not the lace of some random guy's foot. He did a few forward back flips before his chest made contact with another branch, splintering it as he went crashing to the unforgiving earth beneath him.</p>
      <p>"Wh-… what the… hell was that?!" he gasped through coughs, trying to refocus his vision. The doubles of everything finally returned to singles and he could make out a man, attached to the bottom of a tree branch directly above his head. The man was standing upside down with his arms crossed over his chest, and the lifeless eyes of his black mask were aimed at him. Naruto growled in anger as he sat up.</p>
      <p>"Hey, buddy! What the hell is wrong with you, huh?!"</p>
      <p>The masked man chuckled to himself, making the blond angrier. "You're quite the loud one, aren't you?" he said smoothly. Naruto's face twisted further and he scrambled to his feet.</p>
      <p>"What'd you say?! Why don't you come down here and say it to my face?!" he yelled, an arm outstretched with the index finger pointed at his assailant, who cocked his head to the side in seeming curiosity.</p>
      <p>"I think I might've stumbled upon the wrong Naruto Uzumaki," he said, uncrossing his arms and placing them at his sides. "I've heard quite a lot about a boy from this village who's accomplished great things the world over, but you're much too obnoxious to be a ninja, let alone a special one."</p>
      <p>This guy was really starting to piss Naruto off.</p>
      <p>"That's it! I'm kicking your ass right now!" The Nine-Tails' jinchūriki jumped toward the man and flipped, aiming a kick at him, but his target disappeared before he made contact and he landed in a crouch position on the branch the man had been attached to. He began scanning the area.</p>
      <p>In front of him, the man reappeared on another branch, still hanging upside down. "Hasty, too," he taunted. "We haven't even gotten to the introductions yet and you're already trying to beat me into the dirt."</p>
      <p>Naruto gave a faux laugh. "You're one to talk! Who kicked me in the face with no warning?!"</p>
      <p>The man winced. "Do you yell all the time, no matter what you're saying?" he asked in an almost tired voice. "I suppose you have me there, though. I seem to have forgotten my manners." Naruto could tell this guy was being sarcastic. "My name is Nemui Ito, of the Hidden Sand. I am a visitor to your lovely country."</p>
      <p>"That doesn't explain the kick!"</p>
      <p>Ito shook his head slowly. "Well you see, I've come here to fight the ninja of this land. I've heard good things about you, in particular, Naruto."</p>
      <p>The young boy gritted his teeth. "If you wanted to fight, all you had to do was ask." He made the clone seal. "I'm always up for that. <strong>Shadow Clone Jutsu</strong>!" Two Naruto's appeared on either side of the original, taking up battle stances. "Judging from that line in your headband, I assume you're not here with the blessing of your village, huh?" he asked rhetorically.</p>
      <p>Ito smirked behind his mask. "Sharp as a tack, I see."</p>
      <p>
        <em>Boar – Ram – Snake – Horse – Dragon</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Lightning Style: Earth Flash</strong>," Ito said, holding his hands palm-side-down toward the branch to which he was sticking. Thousands of sparks shot from his fingertips, connecting to the branch and travelling along, down the trunk - cracking the bark as it went - and across the ground to the opposing tree. Naruto noticed it was beginning to climb the tree he was on and moved in time, along with one of his clones. The other was a bit too slow and the lightning wrapped around its ankle then ripped through its entire body. It burst into a cloud of smoke before it could be disintegrated.</p>
      <p>Ito lowered himself to one knee and placed both hands firmly on the branch, allowing him to control the lightning much more precisely. His chakra erupted and covered the ground and every tree within several dozen feet. Before Naruto could touch the lightning trap beneath him, his remaining clone grabbed him by the wrists and threw him outside the range of the rogue ninja's jutsu before hitting the earth itself and immediately dissipating. Naruto landed on his back and followed through with a roll, sliding to his feet in a crouched position.</p>
      <p>Naruto caught a kunai aimed at his head and spun in place, returning it to sender, but the Sand shinobi dodged it. He noticed the lightning on the ground and trees had vanished and took the opportunity to try and get close to his opponent again. Running back to the tree Ito was on, he jumped and hit the trunk, continuing up. Ito readied himself for his attacker as Naruto met him in the middle of the branch, the both of them still upside-down. Naruto threw a right jab, and Ito responded by pushing it down with both hands. He leaned forward and connected with a masked head-butt to the hyper blond, forcing him back.</p>
      <p>Ito jumped and hit Naruto with a dropkick, driving the soles of both feet into his stomach. Naruto flew back and smashed into the trunk of the tree, then fell to the ground. Ito gracefully flipped in midair and landed on his feet.</p>
      <p>Naruto turned and pushed himself to his hands and knees, but the top of a foot to his ribs sent him speeding through the forest. As is to be expected, another tree halted his momentum.</p>
      <p>Sitting up against the trunk of the tree he'd collided with, he glared with one eye at the man as he started walking towards him. 'Damn it,' he shouted in his mind.</p>
      <p>"I must say," Ito said, twirling a senbon between the fingers on his right hand, his left in his pocket, "you're somewhat of a disappointment. I expected more discipline from a student of the Toad Sage, Jiraiya, and Kakashi of the Sharingan."</p>
      <p>Naruto scowled at the jab as he spit blood onto the morning grass, pushing himself to his feet. The bark of the tree clung to his jacket as he scraped himself upward. "To be fair," he said through a bloody smile, "I don't really listen to them all that much. They did teach me one thing that stuck, though."</p>
      <p>Ito tilted his head again.</p>
      <p>"If it's obviously a trap, don't walk into it."</p>
      <p>The ground at Ito's feet broke, and a clenched fist penetrated the surface. The rogue ninja had no time at all to react, taking the full impact of a propelled uppercut under his chin. He was lifted off the ground and sent in an arching motion before landing on his back. Naruto landed on his feet in a hunched stance, clutching his ribs. The Naruto leaned against the tree vanished in a puff of smoke.</p>
      <p>Naruto's proud smirk turned sour at the sound of Ito's laughter.</p>
      <p>"What the hell's so funny?" he asked sternly. "What do you have to laugh about on your back?"</p>
      <p>The masked man's laughter subsided a bit as he spoke calmly. "I really enjoy being proven wrong." Naruto's scowl deepened as the man slowly and shakily pushed himself to a seated position supported by his hands. "It's the only time anything interesting happens."</p>
      <p>Without warning, he put his arms up and behind him on the ground, propelling himself feet-first towards Naruto. The bottoms of his sandals met crossed forearms, sliding Naruto back a few feet, his heels digging tracks into the dirt. He pushed the man off of him, causing him to flip and land gracefully once again. Naruto closed the distance and kicked with his right. It was blocked and grabbed, Ito swinging in place and throwing Naruto again, but the boy saw it coming and recovered in the air. This allowed him to anticipate the barrage of strikes now aimed at him, blocking and evading every one. He found a gap in the attacks and managed to land a punch directly to the center of the mask.</p>
      <p>Ito was sent careening backward, spinning wildly, but he was stopped by something behind him.</p>
      <p>"<strong>Rasengan</strong>!" a second Naruto yelled, planting the spherical jutsu in the lower spine of the black-haired ninja. Blood sprayed into his mask, spilling from the bottom down his neck. A victorious smirk formed on the face of the jinchūriki.</p>
      <p>His smiles never last.</p>
      <p>Ito exploded in a burst of sand, sending the grainy particles in every direction, and temporarily blinding both Naruto and his clone, which then popped. The real Naruto turned in place to see the real Ito making the Snake seal. Lightning had begun to surround him, cracking the air and earth.</p>
      <p>"I'm not going to lie to you, Naruto," he spoke almost gently, not even raising his voice, "you've caught me off-guard more than once now. A lesser man would be dead." Blood still dripped from his beard, proving he'd failed to avoid the entirety of the young ninja's terrifying jutsu.</p>
      <p>"Don't worry, buddy, it's only a matter of time," Naruto quipped back. This incited another chuckle from the cloaked shinobi.</p>
      <p>Ito visibly deepened his focus, tensing his body. His clothes and hair began to billow wildly, as if he were in a windstorm. "Unfortunately, our time together must come to-" His words were cut off as he froze completely and the lightning around him died in an instant. "Hmm," he said, sounding almost genuinely curious, "what's this?"</p>
      <p>"<strong>Shadow Possession Jutsu</strong>, complete."</p>
      <p>Naruto looked around the frozen assassin to see Team Ten, shadowed by two Anbu. Shikamaru was on a knee making the Rat seal, with Choji and an Anbu at his ten and two. Ino was directly behind him, the seal for her Mind Destruction Jutsu at the ready and aimed at Ito's head. The second Anbu was on Ino's six.</p>
      <p>"Just in time," Shikamaru said coolly. "Choji, do your thing."</p>
      <p>"Right!" the husky chūnin responded, making the Ram and jutsu-specific seal necessary. "<strong>Partial Expansion Jutsu: Arm</strong>!" His right arm blew up like a balloon, easily three times the size of his body. He held an outstretched palm above Ito's head and brought it down in a slapping motion.</p>
      <p>"<em>Hah</em>!" The grunted shout escaped the captured shinobi's lips as a burst of lightning exploded beneath his feet, a deafening crack echoing through the trees. The ground on which he stood cratered, shortening the shadow between him and Shikamaru just enough to allow him to vanish from the spot. Choji's hand slammed into the earth, finding nothing but dirt and rock.</p>
      <p>"Damn it," the young Nara spat through clenched teeth. He looked up to a branch above their heads and several feet away. "There!" he shouted, pointing to Ito's crouched figure in the tree, his back to them. Standing, he turned his head to the side to glance at the group.</p>
      <p>"I truly am sorry, Naruto," the Sand warrior said. "Due to this rude intrusion, we'll have to continue this at a later date."</p>
      <p>Naruto growled. "Oh, no way! You're not going anywhere!"</p>
      <p>Ito smiled beneath his mask, then turned back to the direction leading away from them.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Snake</em>
      </p>
      <p>Before anyone could do anything about it, a bolt of electricity ran up his body from his feet, in almost a zipper motion, and he disappeared in the blink of an eye. The entire group was caught off guard, all staring wide-eyed at the space where the rogue used to be. All but Naruto, whose face was contorted in rage.</p>
      <p>"Son of a bitch!"</p>
    </div>
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<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Splendid</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="xcontrast">
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<p></p><div><p>The six ninja had been standing in stunned silence for several seconds, not sure how to react. As he is one to do, Naruto broke the quiet ambience.</p><p>"What the hell was that?!" he exclaimed, spinning to cast a questioning glare on his comrades. Shikamaru let out a sigh, closing his eyes.</p><p>"That's gotta be him," he said, sounding exhausted as ever.</p><p>"Who?!" Naruto shouted.</p><p>"Will you stop yelling, you jackass?!" Ino said in an ironically loud fashion.</p><p>Shikamaru groaned. "I'm guessing that's the guy who's behind the murders."</p><p>"Murders?" Naruto asked, visibly calming to assess the information.</p><p>The spiky-haired chūnin stood, placing his hands on his hips. "In the last twenty-four hours, four ninja have been killed - one was a lone sentry on the Hokage Monument, while the other three were in a squad leaving the village for a mission."</p><p>This caught Naruto's undivided attention.</p><p>"That guy took out an entire squad?" he inquired incredulously.</p><p>His lazy former classmate nodded. "We have no idea who he is, but I'm hoping you gathered enough information about him to help us build a profile."</p><p>Naruto clenched a fist in front of his face. "Oh, you bet! I know everything about the guy, he practically told me his life story!"</p><p>Shikamaru focused intently at this. "Seriously? Did you get a name?"</p><p>The blond jinchūriki nodded. "I… can't remember his first name, but his last was Ito. He's from the Hidden Sand Village, or at least he used to be."</p><p>All five of the present shinobi that weren't Naruto dawned shocked expressions at this, trading looks with one another. "What is it?" Naruto asked with a raised eyebrow.</p><p>Choji looked back at him. "Lady Tsunade tasked us with requesting aid from the Sand. We were on our way when we heard your battle and came to help."</p><p>Naruto looked at the ground. "Well I think we're gonna need it," he said grimly.</p>
<hr/><p>Tsunade stared at the boy in front of her with a look of horror on her face. It had been several minutes since he'd returned and informed her of his fight. Kakashi and Yamato were present as well, both with similar expressions.</p><p>"You're sure that was his name? You're certain he said, 'Ito'?" she asked, almost breathlessly.</p><p>Naruto shook the uneasy feeling he was getting and nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure."</p><p>"And he was from the Sand, you said?" she added.</p><p>"Yes."</p><p>The legendary kunoichi cast her gaze to her desk, her eyes not narrowing in the slightest. "This is not good."</p><p>"Wh-... what do you mean, granny?" the teenage ninja asked. "Do you know him?"</p><p>She closed her eyes. "I know <em>of</em> him."</p><p>Kakashi levelled his gaze at his student. "There were reports, almost a decade ago, of a high-ranking shinobi from the Sand betraying the Fourth Kazekage and abandoning his home. He was immediately recorded in their Bingo Book as one of the most dangerous rogue ninja to ever come from their village, having been trained by the Third Kazekage himself."</p><p>"The reports," Yamato interjected, "were that he'd killed ten of the Kazekage's personal Anbu guard before leaving. It's assumed his actual target was the Kazekage, but he was unable to complete his task. His location has never been confirmed since, but there have been dozens of unsolved assassinations thought to have been carried out by him."</p><p>"If this is him," Tsunade finally said, "the entire village is in danger. He's gone uncaptured and unfettered for over nine years. He's infiltrated every major village and assassinated several high-value targets, many of whom were extremely skilled. Not only has he never lost against someone he set his sights on, he's never even been spotted outside of the battle. His victims have always been found after the fact."</p><p>"You're lucky to have survived, Naruto," Yamato said, getting the genin's attention.</p><p>"That being said," Kakashi continued, "you did a good job holding him off. You're the first to my knowledge to walk away from a conflict with him since he became a rogue."</p><p>Naruto dawned a scowl. "You guys have told me a lot about him but you still haven't said who he is yet."</p><p>Tsunade met his eyes. "His name is Nemui Ito, but the name he was given during his time in the Suna Anbu is, The Sleeping Dragon of the Sand."</p><p>Naruto pouted. "That's a dumb name," he said, crossing his arms.</p><p>Kakashi and Yamato both smirked. Leave it to Naruto to mock someone he was just told was a deadly, undefeated assassin who seemed to be targeting him.</p><p>"Naruto," Tsunade said sternly, snapping him out of his pout, "you need to take this man seriously. You said he knew your name. That tells me he was after you specifically. He is a dangerous man. You must not underestimate him."</p><p>Naruto's expression turned serious. "Don't you worry, Granny," he said surely, "the next time I get a shot at this guy, I'm gonna knock his block off."</p><p>Tsunade mirrored the present jōnins' smirks at the boasts of the young jinchūriki. His confidence never ceased to surprise her.</p><p>"I'm sure you will, brat."</p>
<hr/><p>Nemui Ito was a man of very simple urges.</p><p>Aside from his insatiable bloodlust, he was a shockingly laid-back person. He enjoyed sitting still and really disliked having to physically exert himself when he didn't expressly want to.</p><p>Basically, he absolutely hated being chased.</p><p>So when he noticed a squad of four shinobi on his tail, he was understandably agitated. He went out of his way to give these people the opportunity to best him in one-, two-, and even three-on-one combat, and they repay him with no gratitude, just further attempts to stack the odds in their favor.</p><p>Greedy.</p><p>He decided he wouldn't give them what they wanted. He wouldn't be put on the defensive, evading them like a trapped rat. He was the trapper. He was the predator. He was the one who victimized and defeated powerful shinobi on their own soil. There was certainly no way he was going to play into their hands.</p><p>So he waited. He currently sat, legs crossed, on a flat rock in the middle of a small pond, his head resting lazily in his left hand. It didn't take long for the team to catch an unmoving target. Less than three minutes after he'd made the decision to wait, three ninja appeared in a semicircle around him on the bank of the pond.</p><p>One - a kunoichi - wore her brown hair in twin buns on the sides of her head, with a billowing red and white battle kimono and a large scroll on her back. She stood to Ito's right. Another, a boy clad entirely in green save for his orange leg-warmers, took position at his left, his large eyebrows slanted in anger and determination. The third stood directly in front of him, palms raised and pupilless eyes narrowed.</p><p>"Another Hyūga," Ito said in a tired voice. "Gotta love reruns." This extracted an understandable growl from Neji, but the young jōnin otherwise kept his composure. "I know you're there," he said to no one, giving no indication as to what direction he was speaking. A moment passed before another figure appeared on the bank to his rear - a tall man dressed exactly like the boy to his left, but with an obvious experience edge.</p><p>"Nemui Ito," Guy said seriously, "you have absolutely nowhere to go. You're coming back to the Leaf Village with us."</p><p>"Oh, am I now?" he asked, his lazy voice dripping in sarcasm. The scowl on the Hyūga's face only deepened with every colloquial jab. How could Hoheto-sensei lose to someone this insufferable? "Tell me, do you all plan to rush me simultaneously? You green fellows don't seem like that's your style."</p><p>"You are correct!" Lee shouted before making his move unexpectedly. "<strong>Leaf Hurricane</strong>!" He started spinning rapidly with his right leg extended in a roundhouse motion.</p><p>"Lee, no!" Guy yelled, but it was too late. From his seated position, Ito started spinning himself, slowly rising to his feet as he did, his hands clasped together as he molded chakra. Suddenly, a burst of wind chakra exploded from his body, travelling out in all directions. All of them were hit by it, Guy and Neji able to block most of the impact with crossed forearms while Tenten summoned a staff from a scroll and jammed it into the earth, using it as a grip.</p><p>Lee took the brunt of the assault, the deadly wind chakra slicing into the flesh on his chest, arms, and face. With a pained shout, he was thrown back, spinning wildly before hitting the ground on his back and sliding to a halt.</p><p>"Lee!" Guy exclaimed once again.</p><p>"His profile said nothing about wind style jutsu," Neji spat through his grimace.</p><p>Tenten removed her staff and readied herself. "Lady Hokage did say the contents of the profile were incomplete."</p><p>Ito laughed as he slowly stopped spinning, quickly nipping the tip of his right thumb. "You have no idea."</p><p>
        <em>Boar - Dog - Bird - Monkey - Ram</em>
      </p><p>"<strong>Summoning Jutsu: Duneripper</strong>!" he yelled, slamming his palm on the rock at his feet. A large cloud of smoke enveloped the entire clearing, pond and all, forcing the three standing ninja to cover their eyes with a forearm. The smoke finally cleared, but they were still the only presence in the area.</p><p>"Wh-... where is it?" Tenten asked. They could almost hear Ito's smirk as the ground began to rumble. The weapons expert was unable to react before the ground at her feet shattered and a large, armored reptile burst forth, head-butting her in the chest and throwing her into a tree.</p><p>"Tenten!" Neji shouted, beginning to make his way to her while keeping his eyes on the new arrival. It had fully pulled itself from the gaping hole in the ground so he could finally make out what it was. A large, sand-colored lizard, with a thick beak that led into a triangular head built for tunneling through the tough minerals below ground. It wasn't very tall - its stubby legs barely lifted it off the ground - but it was about nine feet long from tail-to-beak. Its skin was like iron.</p><p>Neji took up his Gentle Fist stance between the beast and his recovering teammate. "Tenten, are you alright?" he asked, keeping his gaze trained on the lizard with a secondary focus on its summoner. Tenten sat up against the tree, rubbing the back of her head.</p><p>"Ugh, yeah," she groaned. "What the hell is that thing?"</p><p>"It's a duneripper," Ito answered her from his position on the rock, his palm still flat to its surface. "A near-indestructible creature from the Kazaana Province in the Land of Wind. It can tunnel through dirt and stone faster than most ninja can run, and there's not a natural mineral known to man that can slow it once it starts." He stood, placing his hands in his pockets. "You can't stop it, only escape it."</p><p>The duneripper charged Neji without warning. The white-robed jōnin leapt over it and landed a palm strike to the top of it's head. The chakra barely penetrated the skin, let alone reaching a chakra point. 'Damn it.'</p><p>The creature continued forward, aiming for Tenten. The brunette chūnin raised her staff and held it horizontally, letting the ripper hit it and push her back. She walked backward up the tree behind her and followed through in a flip, landing on its back facing its tail. It thrashed about, trying to reach her, but when it realized its short neck and large head prevented that, it dove back into the earth, forcing the girl to dismount.</p><p>Ito - having been watching the events - failed to notice as a figure materialized before him, and he was face-to-face with Lee, his skin red and eyes pupilless, veins protruding in his forehead and neck.</p><p>"You should pay more attention," the energetic boy said, then landed a right hook to the side of Ito's head, sending him speeding through the trees for what felt like an eternity before he hit the ground. He slowly sat up, holding his head.</p><p>"Well," he said groggily, "I wasn't expecting that." He tried to stand, but Lee appeared above him again, placing a foot to his chest and shoving him back to the ground, cratering the surface beneath him.</p><p>"I don't think so!" he yelled before throwing another fist toward his masked face. As it made contact, Ito burst into sand. "I see. So it is like that, is it?" Lee crossed his arms in an 'X' shape and began to focus intently. The ground and air cracked around him, his skin darkening as his muscles tightened.</p><p>"<strong>The Third Gate: Gate of Life</strong>, open!" Almost as soon as the words left his lips, he vanished.</p><p>Ito was making his way back to the pond to pick off the boy's teammates before focusing on him one-on-one, but he was halted by a fist trying to bury a hole in his stomach. Coughing blood onto the forest floor, he looked down to see Lee with his left arm outstretched into his midsection.</p><p>'This boy…'</p><p>Before he could travel backward at all, a foot met his back. Then another fist to the right side of his face. A shin to his ribs. An elbow to his neck. A knee to his gut. A fist to his jaw. Two feet to his chest.</p><p>The assault finally stopped as his body came crashing to the earth. 'This boy.' He saw Lee standing over him, another fist raised. 'This boy is exactly what I needed.'</p><p>Ito extended his arms straight upward and clapped his hands together, his fingers pointing at the taijutsu user above him.</p><p>"<strong>Lightning Style: Lightning Fang</strong>!"</p><p>A bolt of lightning cracked around his hands before propelling forward faster than Lee could react, striking him in the chest and sending him flying up and backward. Ito took the opportunity to catch his breath.</p><p>"A refreshing pond amidst a choking wasteland of disappointments. I actually thought that was it for a moment."</p><p>Guy was making his way through the forest, having entrusted Neji and Tenten to deal with the duneripper while he backed up Lee. He didn't have to search for his beloved student for long as the boy came falling toward him from above the trees. Guy caught him in a cradle, sliding backwards from the force of his landing. "Lee!" he shouted in the wounded - but still conscious - chūnin's face. "Stay with me!" He turned in an attempt to return to their team.</p><p>"I am alright, sensei," he said through clenched jaws. The young ninja got to his feet with the aid of his mentor, and with a reassuring wink, they continued.</p><p>Tenten was raining hundreds of weapons down on the giant lizard, but each one was bouncing off its hide like a balled up piece of paper. Neji had landed several chakra strikes, but not a single one had done more than annoy the beast. The clearing was covered in holes from the duneripper diving in and out of the earth, as well as craters caused by it jumping from beneath the dirt and attempting to land on them.</p><p>It made another charge, but it was stopped by an orange leg being brought down in an axe motion on top of its head. As its chin was driven into the ground, Lee landed a flying kick to its side and sent it rolling before it poofed out of existence. They both landed side-by-side, but Lee definitely seemed the worse for wear, his body covered in lacerations, the most severe being a cauterized hole in his ribs just below his left pectoral.</p><p>"Lee, are you ok?" Tenten asked, walking over to him and checking his wounds. The boy dawned his usual grin, one eye closed in a wink, the other half-lidded due to pain, and a thumbs up.</p><p>"Don't you worry, Tenten, I am just fine," he said confidently, but his façade was interrupted by a wince as he hunched over clutching the charred flesh on his abdomen.</p><p>Neji joined his team, his Byakugan still scanning the area for their foe while he analyzed Lee's injuries. "You need aid, Lee. Whatever gave you that wound, it went straight through your back and caused internal damage to your left lung."</p><p>"Yes, I can feel it when I breathe, but I promise you I am as youthful as ever," he grunted. "Please, we must focus on the enemy."</p><p>As if on cue, Neji's attention was grabbed by something in the forest. "He's coming back, though he doesn't look to be in much better shape than Lee."</p><p>Guy turned to face the direction he came back from. "You two bring Lee back to the village so he can get medical attention," he said, settling into his taijutsu stance. "I'll handle this."</p><p>"Guy-sensei, we cannot leave you," Lee said, readying himself alongside his master. "I will fight by your side."</p><p>The bushy-browed jōnin grimaced. "You know, for a faithful subordinate, you don't listen very well."</p><p>The green-clad ninja laughed weakly. "I promise to reprimand myself when we return to the village, sensei. Three thousand laps around the training fields, how does that sound?"</p><p>Guy's usual smirk returned. "Alright then. Neji, Tenten, back us up." They both nodded in response.</p><p>Ito shuffled into view, his left hand holding his right shoulder. "I'm… impressed," he gasped. "I've... never seen a duneripper... forced to unsummon before. Those are… some powerful kicks you have there." He stopped several feet away from them. "Especially…<em> you</em>," he said, raising his shaking right arm to point at Lee. "I'm sorry to say… I can't let you live. You'll be a problem later on."</p><p>This won him angry expressions from all of Team Guy, except Lee, who just stared at him intently. He raised a taped hand in his typical stance, flashing a smirk. "Catch me if you can." The young chūnin vanished, and Ito followed suit, leaving the three remaining Leaf ninja looking around in panic.</p><p>"There! He went that way!" Neji yelled, pointing behind them.</p><p>"Right," Guy said, breaking into a run in their direction. "Come with me." His two students nodded and followed closely.</p><p>Lee leapt from branch-to-branch, keeping a glancing eye on his pursuer, the masked ninja not far behind. The taijutsu expert smirked, glad he'd managed to lead the dangerous warrior away from his team. Flipping between branches, he landed on one and stopped, facing his enemy. Ito halted on a branch as well, shredding through hand signs.</p><p>
        <em>Dog - Ram - Boar</em>
      </p><p>"<strong>Earth Style: Mudslide Jutsu</strong>!" he shouted, dropping from the branch and pounding his right fist into the soil. The moment he made contact, the ground around him turned to mud and began shifting drastically, waves and waves of earth being sent in all directions. The trees within the vicinity - including the one Lee was standing on - collapsed from the shockwaves. He landed on a fallen branch and balanced as it floated atop the waves of mud. He crossed his arms in front of him, closing his eyes and focusing once again. The air around him started to sting with raw chakra as the force of his energy extended further and further, forcing Ito to block his face with his forearms.</p><p>"<strong>The Fourth Gate: Gate of Pain</strong>, open!"</p><p>Ito grimaced as the sheer power of Lee's chakra threatened to throw him. 'I wonder if I can survive another Gate being opened.'</p><p>Lee's skin turned the color of blood. "<strong>The Fifth Gate: Gate of Closing</strong>, open!"</p><p>Ito chuckled. "Guess I'll find out."</p><p>Lee stared daggers into him with milky-white eyes, a determined smile forming on his face. "Let's go."</p><p>Lee disappeared again, this time taking Ito by surprise with his speed. Taking his mask off and fastening it to his hip under his cloak, he made the Snake seal to channel chakra, his eyes darting in several directions to try and discern where the venerable Leaf shinobi would be coming from.</p><p>No use.</p><p>A lightning-fast punch came across his left cheek, but he went nowhere as Lee got a handful of his fishnet top and pulled him back, burying a brutal knee in his stomach. He was beginning to run out of blood to spit.</p><p>He caught the next punch coming towards him - though it took both hands - and threw Lee behind him, then chased after the young ninja. 'I have no chance against him in taijutsu,' Ito thought to himself. 'I have to use ninjutsu to beat him.'</p><p>
        <em>Ram</em>
      </p><p>"<strong>Wind Style Ninja Art: Divine Wind</strong>!" Ito took a deep breath and exhaled, sending multiple gusts of wind to form small whirlwinds that spread widely around the area. Lee teleported from spot to spot, carefully stepping between the tornadoes to close the gap and reach his target.</p><p>'I should be far enough away to build the chakra needed,' Ito thought to himself, clapping his hands together and amassing immense amounts of dense energy in his lungs.</p><p>Lee's eyes narrowed. 'He's trying to keep me at a distance so he can prepare a technique,' he realized to himself. 'It does not matter. Whatever it is, it won't be fast enough to hit me.'</p><p>
        <em>Ram</em>
      </p><p>'<strong>Wind Style: Pressure Damage</strong>!' The rogue ninja let out a violent exhale, releasing the mass of wind chakra in his chest and blowing a wind storm at Lee. The boy dodged it with a smirk, but his confidence faltered when the jutsu hit the still-flowing earth and expanded exponentially, entrapping him in a dome-shaped hurricane, tearing his clothes and causing many small cuts to appear on his skin.</p><p>
        <em>Snake</em>
      </p><p>'He's not done?' Lee thought, seeing Ito making another hand seal through his one open eye, wincing at the pain of the wind jutsu he was caught in. The older warrior built chakra in his chest once again.</p><p>'<strong>Lightning Style: False Darkness</strong>!' He repeated the process of the wind jutsu, this time spitting a large bolt of lightning from his mouth. It made contact with the epicenter of the windstorm, and he immediately made another seal.</p><p>
        <em>Bird</em>
      </p><p>"<strong>Ninja Art: Thunderstorm</strong>!"</p><p>The bolt exploded and lightning morphed with the high-speed gusts of the wind jutsu as the dome became a super-storm of dueling chakra natures. The blades of reinforced elemental chakra ripped the trees and rock in the vicinity to shreds and left deep gashes all across Lee's body as he yelled out in immense pain.</p><p>Ito smirked to himself, assured of his victory, unable to anticipate Lee appearing behind him.</p><p>'What? He broke through the dome!'</p><p>Binding tape began wrapping itself around his body as if it had a mind of its own, fastening his arms to his sides.</p><p>'Damn it! I can't move!'</p><p>Lee's arms wrapped tightly around his torso as the boy twisted in midair, flipping them both so their heads were pointing toward the ground. They started spinning like a top at blinding speeds as they rocketed downward.</p><p>"<strong>Primary Lotus</strong>!"</p><p>Lee drove his opponent head-first into the ground, throwing the mud from Ito's earlier jutsu aside as he found the bedrock below. After burying him as deep as he would go, Lee unravelled his bandages and landed on the now-exposed grass. He fell to his knees almost immediately.</p><p>Breathing heavily and wincing at the several broken bones in his body, Lee looked up to see Ito submerged in the dirt to his shoulders, the rest of his body still upright with his legs bent at the knees. The chūnin let himself laugh lightly.</p><p>"I… I did it, Guy-sensei," he said to himself.</p><p>"Did you?"</p><p>Lee's eyes went wide at the sound of Ito's voice coming from ahead of him. The man with his head buried in the ground turned to dirt itself and crumbled, while the trunk of a tree about fifteen feet away from Lee began to deform as the real Ito emerged from its surface.</p><p>"Wh-? No…" Lee said desperately, trying to stand but falling back to his knees.</p><p>"That…" Ito began again. "That was truly something. I've seen incredible things and let me tell you, your performance here today puts almost all of it to shame. To think, a boy with no ninjutsu or genjutsu skills whatsoever pushed me further than I ever have been before; comparatively speaking, of course." Ito was still showing the signs of fatigue and injury. "I swear, I don't think your sensei could've done it better."</p><p>Lee grimaced, forcing himself to his feet as the former Sand ninja began running towards him.</p><p>"You understand now why I have to end you!"</p><p>Lee crouched in order to push forward in attack, but his broken shin gave beneath him and he stumbled forward as his counterpart closed the distance. The rest of Team Guy arrived just in time to see Ito bury his karambit to the hilt in the center of Lee's chest.</p><p>"Lee!" Guy yelled, stopping as the two men just stood in front of one another, Lee's chin now resting on Ito's shoulder.</p><p>"G-... Guy-sensei," he whispered, blood beginning to pool in his mouth and poor over the edge, staining Ito's dirtied coat. The bearded man's left hand held the handle of his blade, and he brought his right to the back of the boy's head, almost hugging him.</p><p>"You," he whispered into Lee's ear. "You are a splendid ninja."</p><p>Lee's eyes became perfect circles at this, then seemed to become even wider as Ito removed the blade and disappeared in a flash of lightning.</p><p>"Lee!" The jumpsuit-wearing jōnin sprinted to catch his beloved student as he fell forward, turning him to his back and holding his head. "Lee, it's going to be okay, stay with me." His voice was panicked. "Neji! Help me with Lee! Check on him, now!"</p><p>The young Hyūga nodded and rushed to his sensei's side, focusing his Byakugan and scanning his injured teammate. His eyes went wide. The blade had pierced his heart completely, through to the other side, and its claw-like shape had eviscerated the muscle tissue on its way out. Without a medical ninja on their team, or a hospital within feet from them, there was nothing they could do.</p><p>Guy looked into his pupil's white eyes, desperate for an answer. Neji, unable to meet his mentor's gaze, closed his eyes and shook his head solemnly. The tears flowed freely on the face of the veteran team leader at that point, as they did for Tenten, who now knelt beside her childhood friend.</p><p>"G-... Guy-sensei…" Lee whispered, his eyes becoming heavy, the light fading. Guy shared eye contact with his most precious student.</p><p>"Don't worry, Lee, everything's gonna be fine, don't you worry about a thing!" he said through choking tears.</p><p>"Guy… Guy-sensei," Lee said again, even softer than the first time. "Did… did I… truly become a splendid ninja, sensei?"</p><p>Guy jammed his eyes shut, the air starting to sting them. After a moment, he was able to open them again. "You are, without a doubt, the most splendid ninja I've ever known, son."</p><p>Lee adopted a small, peaceful smile. "Thank you… sensei… I'm glad I… got to hear it… from you… last…" With that, Lee's heavy lids finally fell completely, and he drifted until he could no longer hear the sobs of his teammates. All he could see was the three of them when they were young, standing shoulder-to-shoulder, Guy-sensei smiling proudly behind them.</p></div></div></div>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Needles</h2></a>
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      <p>Lee's funeral was quite possibly the largest the Hidden Leaf had ever seen. Over his short shinobi career, he'd managed to inspire many, from fellow ninja to civilians he'd aided. It felt like every home, shop, and office was vacated with the amount of people who'd shown up to mourn their fallen friend.</p>
      <p>Everyone in attendance was absolutely miserable. Losing Lee was akin to losing the light in their own eyes. He was a regular presence among the villagers, always willing to share a smile and a few kind words with anyone who would listen. That being said, no one took his death harder than the ninja.</p>
      <p>And among the ninja, none took it harder than Might Guy.</p>
      <p>When the ceremony was finished, he was the first to leave, unable to even spare a parting glance to his remaining two students. Tenten attempted to look for him, but to no avail.</p>
      <p>Slowly, the attendees filtered from the funeral site until only Naruto and Sakura remained. The pink-haired kunoichi had begun to leave when she noticed her teammate standing directly over the mourning shrine, his body tense and trembling ever-so-slightly. Walking to his side, she placed a gentle hand on his left elbow, to which he gave no reaction.</p>
      <p>"Naruto…" she said softly, "how are you-"</p>
      <p>"It's my fault." His words took her by surprise, forcing her to release his arm.</p>
      <p>"What do you mean?" she asked. "That's ridiculous, what could you have done? You weren't even there!"</p>
      <p>Naruto's fists clenched until his knuckles were white. "I fought him."</p>
      <p>"Who, the guy who killed Lee?" she asked, an eyebrow raised. The jinchūriki's teeth were bared in a tight-eyed scowl.</p>
      <p>"I should've killed him." He brought his left arm to his eyes, rubbing away the angry tears staining his face. "I always pull my punches and it was bound to get someone close to me killed eventually. I'm so weak."</p>
      <p>Sakura hesitantly returned her hand to her friend's arm. "That's not true. You being a good person didn't hurt Lee. You have nothing to-" she was interrupted by Naruto spinning around, casting furious, crying eyes on her, forcing her to shrink slightly.</p>
      <p>"Tell that to Lee!" he shouted directly in her face, catching her off-guard. She'd never seen Naruto this angry before, especially with her. He seemed to have the same epiphany, as he closed his eyes and shook his head, trying once again to scrub away the water that was stinging his cheeks. After a moment, he was able to open his eyes again, but he refused to make contact with Sakura's green orbs, instead electing to look past her. "The next time I see him, I'm gonna rip his goddamn head off," he said in an unsettling, monotone voice. Not allowing her to respond, Naruto walked by his childhood crush and vanished, leaving her in stunned silence.</p>
      <p>'Naruto…' she thought to herself, no one around to see her drop her head in her hands and cry for the loss of a friend, and the pain of another.</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>Nemui Ito made his way swiftly through the dark alleys of the Hidden Leaf Village, his progress shadowed further by the dark and stormy evening skies. He knew he'd triggered the barrier around the village, but he didn't seem concerned in the slightest. 'Anyone who pursues me will die,' he'd thought to himself before attempting his infiltration.</p>
      <p>He'd passed several shinobi who were entirely unaware of his presence, mostly genin and chūnin. He could've eliminated them for caution and his own general enjoyment, but he couldn't risk distracting from his mission.</p>
      <p>He needed to kill that bothersome jōnin in the green pajamas.</p>
      <p>There was no doubt, Lee was formidable, potentially as dangerous as any ninja he'd met in combat before, but Ito was no fool. Guy was the true threat. Anything the boy knew, it was taught to him by the black-haired veteran. He wanted nothing more than an opportunity to fight him.</p>
      <p>He had no knowledge of where his target was at the moment, but he didn't mind a game of hide-and-seek. He'd already been in the village for close to twenty minutes and he'd met no resistance, so he was in no rush.</p>
      <p>Of course, thoughts like that always seem to manifest resistance.</p>
      <p>Ito sensed two chakra signatures on his tail, closing in on him quickly with little warning. The Sand rogue opted to stop his progress and await their arrival. As if one cue, Ito jumped backward, narrowly avoiding two shuriken as they embedded themselves in the wall previously to his left. Sliding to a halt on the stone pathway, he turned his masked gaze to two men crouching on the rooftops to either side of him, grinning once he realized who they were.</p>
      <p>"Genma Shiranui and Raidō Namiashi," he said coolly, seemingly unfazed at their having cornered him. "I'm surprised Lady Tsunade would go so far as to send her own personal guard after me. Aren't there chūnin she could have delegated this task to? I'm but a lone intruder."</p>
      <p>Genma trained a murderous expression on the man, unable to find words now that he was face-to-face with the one who killed his friends. Raidō, having maintained a calm demeanor, decided to speak for the both of them.</p>
      <p>"Nemui Ito," the scarred jōnin said firmly, "you have committed heinous crimes against the shinobi of this village. You have two options; surrender, or die." He drew his kokutō sword and held it before him to enunciate his point. Genma made the Tiger seal in solidarity.</p>
      <p>Ito made the Snake sign, responding with almost no inflection, "are you certain those are my only choices?" This received understandable grimaces from the pair of tokubetsu jōnin. "Are you really that eager to see your compatriots again?"</p>
      <p>That did it.</p>
      <p>"Hoheto and Iwashi were our friends!" Genma yelled, taking his partner by surprise. "I'm gonna kill you for that, make no mistake!" The bandana-wearing ninja jumped straight in the air, his initial seal still in place. "<strong>Fire Style Ninja Art: Fire Run</strong>!" Flipping backwards a full three-hundred-sixty degrees, Genma's right leg gained momentum and kicked out, throwing a stream of flames toward the ground. Once it hit the cobble, it split into two streams, running to either side of their target, running up the walls to surround him until they met on the wall behind the cloaked warrior.</p>
      <p>"<strong>Earth Style: Hidden in Stones Jutsu</strong>." Just as the ring of fire closed in on him, Ito sunk quickly into the ground beneath him, disappearing from view.</p>
      <p>"Shit," Raidō growled. "Quick, we have to cut him off wherever he's going."</p>
      <p>"No," Genma said, stopping his friend, "he's not going anywhere. He has no intention of fleeing."</p>
      <p>"How do you know?" the brunette jōnin asked.</p>
      <p>Genma gritted his teeth on the senbon in his mouth. "I just do. Stay vigilante."</p>
      <p>As if on command, the rooftop cracked at Raidō's feet. "<strong>Earth Style: Headhunter Jutsu</strong>." Strong hands grasped his ankles and yanked him under the clay of the building on which he stood until it encased him up to his jaw.</p>
      <p>"Raidō!" Genma yelled, but just as he was going to act, Ito appeared behind him. He turned his head in time to watch the sandal-clad foot collide with the side of his face, sending him diagonally through both floors of the building beneath him.</p>
      <p>As the dust settled, Genma opened his eyes to realize his body had cratered the wooden floor of the house he'd been sent through, as well as the stone beneath it. Ito teleported before him, hands in his pockets, aloof as ever. He seemed like he was about to speak, but Raidō, having freed himself, appeared at his flank, shakily holding his sword to the man's back. Ito was too fast, however, and planted a lightning-fast sole kick to Raidō's stomach, forcing him through the wall behind him and again through the next building over.</p>
      <p>Genma really hoped there was no one in the two structures they were destroying.</p>
      <p>"Persistent, isn't he?" Ito asked genuinely, still staring at the hole Raidō's body made in the wall behind him, hands still shoved into his pockets.</p>
      <p>Genma turned his head to the left, spitting blood into the rubble at his side. "You're gonna pay for that."</p>
      <p>Ito shook his head, turning back to the Leaf jōnin, who's bloody teeth still clenched a senbon. "Is that the village motto here?" he asked sarcastically. "I feel like I've heard it a dozen times in the two days since I arrived, and it's starting to… <em>irk</em> me."</p>
      <p>Genma slid himself back, attempting to prop his body against the shattered floor behind him. "That's just too damn bad."</p>
      <p>
        <em>Snake - Ram - Monkey - Boar - Horse - Tiger</em>
      </p>
      <p>'<strong>Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu</strong>!' With a deep inhale, Genma blew a great inferno from his mouth, filling the room with searing flames, shattering every window and crisping the wood underneath him. After several seconds, the flames dissipated to reveal a stone slab standing vertically where Ito once was. The man in question jumped from behind it and landed on top, attempting to make a hand sign, but Genma anticipated his move and spit the senbon in his mouth at him, piercing the center of Ito's right pectoral muscle deeply and interrupting his seals. He winced before falling back behind the stone wall to regroup.</p>
      <p>Genma took his opportunity to recover, making his way back to a knee and holding the Tiger sign. He looked to his left to see Raidō stepping back through the large hole in the wall with his ebony blade pointed at Ito horizontally over his left elbow.</p>
      <p>Genma removed a kunai from the pouch on his thigh and tossed it up, sticking it to the ceiling above Ito's head. The former Sand ninja smirked at it, noticing the explosive tag wrapped around the handle just as it detonated. The second floor of the building caved in, raining clay and wood on their heads. The wall before them crumbled, but as the debris hit the ground unceremoniously, they found no one behind it.</p>
      <p>Genma growled. "This guy is annoying."</p>
      <p>"But good," Raidō said, sheathing his sword and crouching, running through hand signs. "He's an expert at evasion and guerrilla combat. It's an incredibly difficult fighting style to respond to." Placing a hand palm-down on the floor in front of him, Raidō closed his eyes. "<strong>Water Style: Pillar Encirclement</strong>." Four pillars of water suddenly rose from the ground in a square around the caster, reaching to the ceiling of the second floor. "I'll cover you, we're more likely to beat him with me backing you up."</p>
      <p>Nodding, Genma removed another senbon from the pouch on his hip and placed it in his mouth. "It could still be several minutes until backup arrives. We need to at least hold him off until then."</p>
      <p>
        <em>Tiger</em>
      </p>
      <p>'<strong>Fire Style: Flame Screen Gale</strong>.' With another deep breath, Genma exhaled what seemed to be a mist of flame. It filled the room, instantly scathing everything it touched. The moment it made contact with Raidō's pillars, a loud hiss rang out as steam brought visibility to zero.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Rat - Snake - Horse - Dog</em>
      </p>
      <p>Ito ascended from the ground in the center of the room, spinning as he did. '<strong>Wind Style: Vacuum Blast</strong>.' Streams of razor-sharp wind chakra ripped through the entire space, cutting through the fog of boiling water and fire and clearing the air around them. As his rotation ended, he sent two senbon towards Raidō, but they hit an invisible wall between two of the pillars and clattered to the floor. 'Good to know,' he thought to himself.</p>
      <p>Turning on Genma, he threw another three senbon at the young jōnin who deflected all of them with a kunai. He spit a second senbon at the man and closed the gap as it was traveling. Ito turned slightly to the left to allow the needle to pass by his face before grabbing Genma's extended wrist, twisting until he released his kunai. They both unsheathed senbon in their left hands and crossed blows between them.</p>
      <p>"You two are interesting," Ito said calmly. "Your combination attacks are smooth and unique. Hiruzen chose wisely when he made you his personal guard. A shame Hayate isn't still with us, or I'd probably be dead facing all three of you."</p>
      <p>"If you hadn't murdered Iwashi, you'd be in the exact same mess," Raidō said in his low tone. Ito let out a sharp laugh, making the two ninja scowl.</p>
      <p>"Hayate's replacement was disappointing. The boy was brave, but he was no match for me. Surprising that you'd recommend a chūnin to join your ranks."</p>
      <p>Genma grunted angrily in his enemy's face. "Iwashi was a talented young shinobi who would've grown to make Hayate proud as his successor. You extinguished his light before it could truly blossom, and for that, you will die."</p>
      <p>Another laugh left his masked lips. "Whatever you say." If possible, the scowls of the two Konoha ninja deepened. "In any case, I'm very much aware of the limited time I have to deal with the two of you before you receive help." Ito moved his right hand down Genma's arm until he was grasping the back of his hand, then forced him into a joined seal.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Snake</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Earth Style: Earth Hold</strong>." The ground on either side of the three men began to rise until they were all trapped within an ally inside the building, narrowing their battlefield. Having distracted Genma momentarily, Ito leapt upward and forced his right knee into the left side of the man's face, driving him into the newly-formed wall to his right. Upon impact, Genma dropped his senbon and Ito shoved his into Genma's abdomen, just above his stomach, causing the young ninja to wince and fall to his hands and knees.</p>
      <p>"Genma! Damn it!" Raidō began shredding through hand signs as fast as he could.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Monkey - Rat - Tiger - Dragon - Horse - Dragon</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Water Style: Mouth of the Serpent</strong>!" A spinning vortex of water emerged from the ground between his friend and their foe, taking on the appearance of a large snake with a gaping jaw. It turned to Ito and forced him back, then turned again and scooped Genma into its maw, swallowing him and carrying him into the ground.</p>
      <p>"Good move," Ito said, "but what will you do about the poison senbon I stuck him with?"</p>
      <p>Raidō's eyes went wide before he calmed himself.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Tiger</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Medical Water Style: Water Mosquitoes</strong>!" The remaining vapor in the air condensed to form dozens of droplets about half an inch in width before sculpting further to take the shape of mosquitoes. Once they were all complete, they swarmed through the hole Raidō had been sent through earlier, eventually leaving their view.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Ram</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Release</strong>!" The four pillars around Raidō fell to the ground in a splash as he made more signs.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Ram - Horse - Bird - Ram</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Medical Water Style: Praying Mantis</strong>!" Water enveloped the Leaf jōnin's fists in a bubble before morphing into the bladed hands of a praying mantis, extending about a foot past Raidō's own knuckles. Once the jutsu was complete, Raidō sprung into action, closing the short distance between himself and Ito and beginning a frenzied assault. His swipes with the water claws were eccentric and unpredictable, taking Ito by surprise more than once and resulting in several paper-thin slices to appear on his skin and clothing. About three full seconds after receiving a wound from the jutsu, they'd begin bleeding profusely, as if his blood didn't even realize an opening had presented itself until sometime after-the-fact.</p>
      <p>"That's a sharp water blade you have," he said, sizing up his foe. "Similar to a chakra scalpel, I assume." He reached behind his back and removed his karambit, holding it in front of his face. Exhaling slowly, greenish wind chakra began enveloping the blade, extending it exponentially until it formed a full-sized sickle.</p>
      <p>Closing in on Raidō again, Ito swung downward with his chakra weapon. Raidō held his left Mantis limb horizontally above his head to block, but when they made contact, the sickle sliced right through, the side opposite Raidō's hand turning to ordinary water and splashing to the ground. Jumping back to avoid the remainder of Ito's swing, the tokubetsu jōnin grimaced again.</p>
      <p>'Not good,' he thought to himself before making the Ram seal.</p>
      <p>"<strong>Release</strong>." The water surrounding both of his hands poured to the ground, spraying on contact with the inch of liquid that covered the floor from Raidō's pillars being dispelled. Removing his kokutō once again, he settled in a kenjutsu stance to prepare. "This sword is a kokutō," he said firmly to Ito. "The ebony blade of the kokutō is special, being forged, tempered, and sharpened with chakra." His eyes narrowed in focus. "It can compete with any blade of wind, and this is the only one in the Hidden Leaf Village."</p>
      <p>Ito flipped his sickle so that he held it in a reverse grip. "I'm well aware of the kokutō blade. They're incredibly rare due to the skill needed to create and maintain them. I'll be honest, I didn't expect to see one here of all places."</p>
      <p>"You'll do more than see it," Raidō said before teleporting behind him without warning and making a down swing toward the masked man's left shoulder. He responded, spinning to his right and pulling his left hand across, blocking the blade from underneath with the sickle.</p>
      <p>Ito fell to his back and kicked with his right foot to Raidō's chest, sending him upward. Raidō landed against the second floor ceiling on both feet and pushed himself back toward Ito, his sword to his left in preparation for a swing. As he brought it around, the former Sand Anbu parried once again and rolled back, recovering to block another thrust with the flat side of his blade.</p>
      <p>"Your speed and technique are good," he said, sounding genuinely impressed. "I imagine this is similar to what it would've been like to cross blades with Hayate."</p>
      <p>Raidō let himself show a rare sign of emotion, his face twisting in anger. "Stop using my dead friends to get to me!" He heard a slight chuckle from the black mask.</p>
      <p>"Why would I do that when it's obviously working?" He twisted his sickle so that it was above the kokutō and pushed down with his right hand on the blade, forcing Raidō to shove his sword into the charred wood at their feet. The slight stumble was enough as a taped knee found its home underneath Raidō's chin, sending him up several feet and then down on his back. When his eyes shot open, he saw Ito swinging his wind sickle down in a hammer-like motion over his head.</p>
      <p>'Is this really it?' the Leaf shinobi thought to himself.</p>
      <p>"<strong>Fire Style: Fox Fire</strong>!" A ball of malicious flame pegged Ito in his ribs, throwing him across the room and through the wall. Raidō looked to his right to see Genma standing in the hole in the wall, holding the Tiger seal as nine of the same flaming orbs surrounded his upper body in a vertical halo. Several mosquitoes made of water were sticking to his exposed skin, still siphoning the remnants of Ito's poison from his bloodstream.</p>
      <p>Sparing a glance at his friend to make sure he was alright, Genma returned his focus to the new hole made by Ito and followed him through it.</p>
      <p>Stepping out onto the street, Genma noticed it was completely abandoned, unsurprisingly. He found Ito pulling himself from the wreckage of a small magazine kiosk, brushing dust and chips of wood from his coat and returning his karambit to it's holster.</p>
      <p>"That hurt," he said seemingly to himself, lifting the mask from his face and placing it on his hip. "You've both done a fantastic job of stalling me, but I'm afraid playtime is over. I won't even be able to get my fight with Might Guy now, so there's no point in entertaining whatever trash shows up to aid you."</p>
      <p>Genma let out a steady groan as the flaming orbs grew in size and intensity before yelling out, "you won't be going anywhere! I'm ending you right here!" One-by-one, the fireballs were launched at Ito, the speed of them rendering them almost invisible. Ito ran across the street and jumped, landing on the side of a building. Continuing his momentum, he sped across the sides of several structures, allowing the flaming spheres to collide behind him, barely missing him.</p>
      <p>He landed on the ground once again and turned, changing his direction so he was running straight at Genma. The orbs were now being thrown directly at him, but he continued to shift from side-to-side as they collided with the ground, sending clouds of dust into the sky.</p>
      <p>Clapping his hands together, Genma dawned a furious, almost crazed expression. "Today you die!" Genma stepped forward and twisted to his left, sliding his foot out across the ground as he whirled back into a front-facing position. Exhaling fire in a line, he spun again, kicking a burst of wind chakra at the flames. "<strong>Fire Style: Majestic Hurricane</strong>!" The wall of fire split into dozens of spiraling tops, all expanding wildly and firing in several directions. They became wider with every rotation, spinning faster and closing in on one another until they filled the street, collapsing buildings on the side of the road and engulfing the entire area in an uncontrollable inferno.</p>
      <p>Throwing a senbon and kunai into the air, Genma began weaving more hand signs as the tools collided and the senbon was sent down toward Ito.</p>
      <p>
        <em>Ox – Dog – Dragon – Rat – Dog – Boar – Snake – Tiger</em>
      </p>
      <p>"<strong>Ninja Art: Senbon Shadow Clone Jutsu</strong>!"</p>
      <p>The lone senbon turned into a thousand as a hellish rain of needles poured down upon the firestorm. After several seconds, the flaming cyclones finally died out, leaving scorched earth and burning buildings in its wake, a layer of senbon covering everything in sight. In the center of the street, Ito was on his back, his entire body blackened from the burns, the throwing needles protruding from his torso and legs making him look like a pincushion. Collapsing to his knees, Genma let out a hefty sigh. "Finally," he whispered to himself. "I… I did it." The young man's eyes closed as he lifted his face to the dark sky, feeling the minuscule droplets of a fresh rain hitting his face. "You can rest now, Hoheto, Iwashi."</p>
      <p>Genma's victorious smile broke as he felt a hand firmly grip the top of his head. A jolt of electricity burst through his body, paralyzing him. He opened his eyes as wide as he thought they could go, but they just went wider when he saw Ito standing above him. He shifted his gaze to what he thought was Ito's lifeless body, but it burst into a cloud of smoke, leaving a charred and punctured log of wood in its place.</p>
      <p>"H-... how?" Genma stuttered, unable to fully move his mouth to form words as his senbon fell from his slacked jaws and clattered in the dust. He turned his eyes back to Ito, seeing his stern expression, his usual smirk long gone.</p>
      <p>"Truly remarkable," he said, unmoving. "I didn't think that jutsu was known to anyone outside of the Uchiha. Where'd you learn it?" He waited, legitimately wanting an answer from the man. "Oh… right. You can't move or talk. Never mind, then." Lifting his right hand to make his unique, one-handed Bird seal and keeping his left on Genma's head, Ito closed his eyes to focus. "I am sorry about your friends. It was existential happenstance that put them in my path. I was not seeking them out."</p>
      <p>Genma continued to stare wide-eyed at the man above him, a single, frustrated tear rolling down his left cheek.</p>
      <p>"I know that's no consolation to you, but it's the truth." Opening his eyes again, Ito gave him a small, genuine smile. "You've made your village proud today, boy." He took a deep, concentrated breath. "<strong>Ninja Art: Conduit</strong>."</p>
      <p>Suddenly, Ito turned to lightning and entered Genma's body through the contact in his forehead. In less than a second, he traveled through his entire chakra network, hitting all three-hundred-sixty-one chakra points and cauterizing them. Within nanoseconds, all of his major bodily organs and muscles - his heart, lungs, even his brain - ceased operating entirely. Just as instantly as he'd entered his body, Ito reappeared, standing before Genma with both arms at his sides. He stared into the Leaf jōnin's now-lifeless eyes unblinking, the young man's mouth agape, until he swayed from side-to-side and then collapsed in the dirt.</p>
      <p>Just as Genma fell, Raidō had stepped onto the street, his eyes becoming wide as saucers. "You…" he growled as low as his voice could go. "You bastard! I'm gonna kill you!" He charged his friend's murderer, his kokutō raised.</p>
      <p>As he swung to cut the man down, Ito vanished in a streak of lightning.</p>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Kindred</h2></a>
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      <p>Nemui Ito leaned against the trunk of the largest redwood tree he could find, his body perched on a branch about halfway up. It was the same tree he'd called home for the last three days, as it stretched far beyond the forest canopy which allowed for a clear line-of-sight in every direction.</p>
      <p>He'd begun to feel the effects of his excursions. His skin was bruised and lacerated, his muscles tight and knotted. Two ribs were clearly fractured, as was his jaw just under a bottom molar on the right side of his mouth, and he was rather confident he'd slipped a disk in his back.</p>
      <p>"I might need to take the day off," he mused to himself, his gaze drifting upward towards the sun shining through the branches above his head. "These Leaf ninja are working little ol' me to the bone." He reached into the utility pouch on the back-right of his belt and fished out a somewhat crumpled pack of cigarettes, removing one and placing it in his mouth. 'I need to find a way to have a one-on-one chat with that big green bastard. If I fight him with backup, I don't see it playing out in my favor.'</p>
      <p>After returning the pack to his pouch and lighting his cigarette, he crossed his arms over his chest and exhaled deeply, his field of vision becoming muddied by smoke. 'And that Uzumaki brat. I doubt I'll get another chance at the Leaf's jinchūriki solo unless I kill everyone else first.' Ito took another long drag, ashing about half of his cigarette in the dramatic inhalation. He closed his eyes to avoid the very rays of sunlight he'd just been admiring. They'd only been closed for a moment before his peace was disturbed.</p>
      <p>"What do <em>you</em> want?" he asked, not even bothering to open his darkened lids.</p>
      <p>"Why don't you look at us, you son-of-a-bitch?" a gruff voice retorted.</p>
      <p>Ito scoffed around his cigarette. "Why bother? I know who you are, I just need you to tell me why you're interrupting me on such a peaceful afternoon."</p>
      <p>The other voice trembled slightly in obvious anger. "You can't even look us in the face? After everything? After what you did?"</p>
      <p>Ito sighed and relented, seemingly out of boredom than anything resembling guilt or pity. The lids of his left eye parted, and he was greeted with the sight of several Sand Anbu squadrons adorning the many branches before him. There were twenty-three masked ninja in total.</p>
      <p>"Nine years," the apparent leader growled. "<em>Nine years</em>, we've been tasked with hunting you down. <em>Nine years</em>, you've evaded and eluded us. Finally, when we catch up to you, you're napping, prime for the taking."</p>
      <p>"And yet," the still-seated shinobi drawled, "you didn't make your move, instead choosing to present some grand gesture of fairness or vengeance." He fully opened both eyes. "So which is it?"</p>
      <p>The leader, in a crouched position, his ornate demon mask shadowed by his bowed head, stood and removed his tantō. "You must return with us to the Hidden Sand Village to face Lord Gaara's judgment, or you must die."</p>
      <p>A cigarette butt bouncing off his forehead was his answer.</p>
      <p>"Very well, Ito-sensei."</p>
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      <p>"I don't know, Ino. I don't think I've ever seen him that upset before." Sakura had her face resting in the palm of her left hand, her right absent-mindedly scooting her cup of tea on the table in front of her, as she stared off into space thinking of her boisterous teammate. Across the tea shop table from her sat her lifelong frenemy, Ino Yamanaka, nursing a similar cup.</p>
      <p>"I mean, we all lost a friend yesterday," she started, blowing on the liquid in her hands. "Maybe Naruto just handles loss a little harder than the rest of us."</p>
      <p>"No, it's not that. I truly think he blames himself for Lee's death."</p>
      <p>"You mean <em>murder</em>," a voice corrected from behind the young medical ninja. Sakura turned to see the back of a brunette head, the hair pulled into two tight buns. Tenten turned her head slightly to cast one miserable eye on her fellow Leaf kunoichi. "Lee was <em>murdered</em>. He wasn't hit by a train. He didn't have a heart attack. Someone killed him. And it's no one's fault but that psycho in the black mask." She turned back toward her table. "And maybe Lee's," she added before downing the remainder of her clearly alcoholic beverage.</p>
      <p>"How could you say that?" Sakura asked her.</p>
      <p>"Yeah, what the hell, Tenten?" Ino added. "Lee died in the line of duty defending our village."</p>
      <p>"<em>No</em>!" she shouted, banging her ceramic glass on the table and shattering the bottom. "He died fighting <em>alone</em> defending his <em>team</em>." She brushed some broken cup pieces from her hand, examining the small cuts on her palm. "His <em>useless</em> team who couldn't keep him alive."</p>
      <p>"Tenten..." Sakura started, but was cut off.</p>
      <p>"You're right." All three women looked up to see the only other non-employee in the store standing before them, a tall man dressed entirely in green. "Tenten, you are correct. <em>I </em>am responsible for the death of your friend and my precious student. I underestimated our opponent and held back, allowing Lee to fight him alone. It is a mistake I will regret for the rest of my life." Tenten looked as if she was going to speak but a firm hand on the top of her head stifled her words. "I promise you I will avenge him. I swear it on my ninja way."</p>
      <p>His words would seem silly to most, but accompanied by his big, bright grin and his confident thumbs-up, it gave Tenten hope. She wiped the fresh tears from her cheeks.</p>
      <p>"Thank you, Guy-sensei."</p>
      <hr/>
      <p>Ito stumbled and leaned against a tree to keep himself from collapsing. His right hand clutched his hip, covering a deep laceration caused by a tantō. His torso was riddled with puncture wounds, and two eight-pointed shuriken still protruded from his left bicep and shin. He started walking forward again, removing projectiles and applying pressure to injuries on the way. He bent slightly, grabbing the handle of a katana and pulling it from both the skull of an Anbu and the ground below, swiping it through the air to rid it of blood and dirt.</p>
      <p>The leader of the entire battalion crawled on his hands and knees slowly, attempting to find another weapon with which to defend himself. His hand almost grasped a giant shuriken when he felt the point of a sword poke the back of his flak jacket directly between his shoulder blades.</p>
      <p>The man let out a defeated chuckle, turning and laying almost fully on his back, one elbow supporting himself so he could see his former mentor. His free hand removed his mask, discarding it on the forest floor. His brown eyes were faded and red, and very, <em>very</em> tired. "You're the devil," he almost laughed through bloody, grinning teeth.</p>
      <p>Ito was like a statue, his left arm outstretched to brandish his blade, his right still clutching the wound near his waistline. "What does that make you, Toga?"</p>
      <p>The beaten man scoffed. "Nothing special, I'd imagine." He slowly and painfully pushed himself to his knees with a groan. "Come on then." He straightened his back, leaning his head backward and allowing his arms to fall to his sides. He inhaled deeply, closing his eyes. "See you soon, Ito-sensei."</p>
      <p>"Hn." With one swift loop, he cleaved the borrowed weapon in a horizontal motion, severing the Anbu captain's throat to his spine. Before the man had even finished dying, Ito walked past him and threw the sword into the ground. The <em>thud</em> of Ito's former pupil's body hitting the forest floor made him suddenly very aware of his own exhaustion and injury, causing his left knee to buckle slightly. He recovered, but it happened again almost immediately.</p>
      <p>"Fuck."</p>
      <p>Nemui Ito stumbled once more, this time unable to right himself as his limp body crumpled to the soil, his world quickly turning black amidst the slaughter he created just moments before.</p>
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      <p>When Ito came to, the dense forest had been plunged into darkness. He gently lifted his head to accommodate the violent throbbing it felt. 'It's night. I've been out at least five hours. That's not good.'</p>
      <p>He spent the next several minutes making his way to a standing position and once again becoming used to the feeling of movement. It was like he'd been dead. After getting his bearings and establishing the reality of his situation, he began travelling in the opposite direction of the village. "Surely a patrol will stumble upon this scene soon. I don't favor my chances of surviving another encounter tonight."</p>
      <p>Ito walked north of the village for hours, his slow pace impeding his progress drastically. He'd managed to treat and bandage most of his injuries, and regained the majority of movement in his extremities, but opted to continue walking to preserve chakra and avoid further injuring himself.</p>
      <p>After almost five hours of thrilling adventure, the sun began to peek through the branches of the eastern treetops. He shielded his face with his forearm, his brain still pounding from the events the night before. Ito almost complained, until he heard the sound of footsteps on tree branches several yards ahead. He grabbed his mask from beneath his coat and placed it on his face, performing a jutsu to melt into the side of a nearby tree.</p>
      <p>A young man, maybe mid- to late-teens, landed in the small clearing Ito previously occupied. Crouching, he brushed the grass in front of him, examining the terrain. He then tilted his head up and sniffed the air several times. "I know you're here," he said in an unsettling monotone.</p>
      <p>Ito sighed before appearing from the trunk of the tree, his hands raised in surrender. "I'm not looking for a fight," he said calmly, but his beaten and bloodied look caused the boy to place a palm on the sword on his hip. Suddenly, something very interesting caught the Sand rogue's attention.</p>
      <p>Red irises, each adorned with a black, three-comma tomoe.</p>
      <p>Ito lowered his arms and settled a hand on the hilt of his karambit, smirking behind his mask.</p>
      <p>"Nice eyes, kid."</p>
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